NBA Rumors: Latest Buzz on Jahlil Okafor and Eric Bledsoe

Jahlil Okafor is not a part of The Process.

After falling completely out of the Philadelphia 76ers' rotation this season, the former No. 3 overall pick wants out.

Okafor requested a buyout, but Philly has other plans: They want to trade him.

For the right price.

A buyout wouldn't give the Sixers anything in return for such a high draft pick, and they would hate to see him go to a conference rival. But a trade would at least give them something in return.

The problem is Okafor's trade value has taken a nose dive, especially after the Sixers declined his fourth-year option, making him an unrestricted free agent this coming summer.

"I was fine with that," Okafor told The Athletic's Rich Hofmann. "I honestly didn't want them to pick up my option. I've been going through a lot since I've been here, so the fact that I know at the end of the season that I'll have at least an opportunity to play elsewhere, that's great. Now I'm just in a position to where, how can I get on the court? That's not happening here and I want to play."

The one team that is interested in a potential trade, the Boston Celtics, see Okafor as more of a long-term project than someone who can contribute right away, so they aren't on board with Philly's request for a first-round pick in return, per Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe (h/t Jack Maloney of CBS Sports).

Out of a possible nine games, Okafor has only played in one, logging 10 points and nine rebounds.

"I'm playing Amir (Johnson) ahead of him and that's just the situation," head coach Brett Brown said, per Matt Bowker of NBC Sports Philadelphia (h/t Yahoo Sports). "[Okafor] doesn't let people know. He comes in and his head's good and his spirit's good. And he and I talk all the time, but that is the bottom line. He is not in the rotation."

With trade in limbo, Bledsoe eyes return to team facility

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It's been two weeks since Eric Bledsoe's ill-advised "I don't wanna be here" tweet.

And while there have been rumors about deals, none have materialized.

The Phoenix Suns can be patient while working on a trade, but Bledsoe, who has been banished from playing or traveling with the team, can't.

If he wants to make an immediate impact on whatever team he lands on, he has to stay in shape.

This is why sources told The Vertical's Shams Charania that Bledsoe plans to return to the Suns facility to work with staff members early this week.

Last week, Bledsoe was part of a now-dead proposed deal that would have landed him in Detroit, sources told Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated.

New Orleans was a third team involved. The Suns would have received the Pistons' 2019 first-round pick, the Pelicans' 2018 first-round pick, Omer Asik and Alexis Ajinca. Detroit would have landed Bledsoe and New Orleans would have acquired Reggie Jackson.